I can always tell spring is approaching when the hockey equipment starts stinking up my car after a few hours parked in the sun. By the end of the year, even the “new-this-year” hockey equipment is smelly, and it’s embarrassing to have non-hockey people in my car, or in my house where my three kids’ hockey bags are always open and equipment strewn about.
A recent national survey by Purex® revealed a shocking 77 per cent of Canadians wash their hockey equipment once a year or less, and more than a third say the NEVER wash it. Of those who said they never wash their hockey equipment, seven per cent of respondents said they didn’t mind living with the pungent odour often associated with hockey equipment; 25 per cent admitted they didn’t know they could wash their hockey gear; another 15 per cent thought it would be too difficult; and nine per cent did not realize they could use laundry detergent at home to wash their equipment.
So, what is the solution to smelly hockey gear?
When I heard about the newly launched Purex® Odour Release laundry detergent, I jumped at the chance to try it out. No matter what I had been doing, my kids’ equipment still had a strong hockey smell to it. Yes, I know hockey gear can provoke nostalgia in some, but this was overboard and instead was provoking the gag reflex.
As someone who’s all for throwing as much hockey gear in the washing machine as possible, I was thrilled that along with my Purex® Odour Release, I received instructions on how to wash shoulder pads, pants, elbow pads, shin guards, and gloves. That’s right…. You can wash most of your kids gear just by following Purex Odour Release Gear Washing Tips (see below).
To try out the effectiveness of Purex® Odour Release, I thought I’d try it out on my boys' gear. I started with my middle child. Heavily favoured to win a series but at the time down two games to 1, I joked with him that I was going to “wash the bad luck and the stink” out of his equipment. I started with his jerseys, then threw his undergear, shoulder pads, and elbow pads all in the same wash. As I added the gear to the washing machine I took a whiff of each piece. If 1 was not smelly and 10 was very smelly, they registered around an 8.5.
As I pulled the gear and jerseys from the washing machine after the wash, I could not believe it. Everything was registering at not smelly at all.
Then I tackled my older son's equipment, that had been left in the van my mistake for a couple of days (oops!). It is an understatement to say it started off rancid, but with one wash, the smell was gone!
Purex® Odour Release is the first branded value laundry detergent in Canada that boasts fragrance encapsulation with odour-elimination technology, which is ideal for hockey-obsessed Canadians because it helps fight tough odours.
Having tried several gear washing solutions over the years through this website, I would say that Purex® Odour Release, in my experience, is most effective at getting rid of the stink.
And guess what? My younger son’s team rallied back and handily won the next game, then took game 5 in OT to finish of the series.
This is one helpful household product that I won’t be without from here on in.
To support the launch of new Purex® Odour Release, The Purex Odour-Free Hockey Shop is hitting the road to get the stink out of the rink and connect with hockey families across Ontario. Their goals? To educate Canadians on the fact that you can #WASHYOURGEAR. If you are interested in attending one of their stops, they will be handing out FREE used hockey gear washed in NEW Purex® Odour Release (one item per person, while supplies last) and will be communicating key product benefits and equipment washing tips. I’m planning at being at the Belleville stop (Apr. 4 at the Belleville Sens game), because this is one product, and cause, that I can get behind. For more information, look at locations and dates at www.PurexHockeyShop.ca.
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Until next time, happy hockey!
*This post has been sponsored by Henkel Canada